Toni Kirkpatrick hosted our Instagram on February 19th for our weekly #SalaSundays series. Below are a few questions that we asked Toni.
Latinx In Publishing (LxP): What do you do?
Toni Kirkpatrick (TK): I acquire crime and book club fiction for Crooked Lane Books and Alcove Press. I also freelance edit. I also write short stories that sometimes require me to search through photos of Oscar Isaac and Pedro Pascal.
LxP: How did you get started?
TK: After college, I attended the Denver Publishing Institute on a scholarship, then got a Masters in fiction writing at USC, then moved out to New York where I stayed with a friend on Long Island, job searched on the library's computers, and contacted every DPI alum I could. In 3 months, I landed a position as an Editorial Assistant at St. Martin's Press working mostly on mysteries and thrillers.
LxP: What do you wish you knew before getting into the industry?
TK: I wish I'd known that so much about getting ahead has to do with certain higher-ups liking you and broadcasting all of the work that you are doing, as opposed to simply doing it. Not that I would have done anything different, but you know. Also, mentors are so so important. Find people to give you advice and support!
LxP: What book are you currently working on or reading?
I am excited for Michelle Cruz's romantic thriller EVEN WHEN YOU LIE to come out this month! I'm reading THAT DANGEROUS ENERGY by Aya de León.
Toni Kirkpatrick is a Senior Acquisitions Editor at Crooked Lane Books and Alcove Press and a freelance editor. Born to a Mexican immigrant mother and white father and originally from the Los Angeles area, she earned degrees from the University of Notre Dame and USC before working at St. Martin's Press for more than ten years. A Macondo Fellow, she is the author of The Bolero of Andi Rowe and has published short stories in Aster(ix), LatineLit, Somos En Escrito, and the Latino Book Review, all under the name Toni Margarita Plummer. She will have a story in the forthcoming horror anthology from Arte Público Press. Toni serves as Secretary on the board of Latinx in Publishing and lives in the Mid-Hudson Valley.
